Weather

Hilary washes trash into Huntington Harbor, creating unsafe conditions for residents, wildlife

Thursday, August 24, 2023
The cleanup from Hilary is intensifying out at sea. All that rain water has washed a significant amount of trash and other debris into Huntington Harbor, creating unsafe conditions for boaters, swimmers and local wildlife.
HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. (KABC) -- Huntington Beach resident Lisa Burford found trash, debris and large items in the Huntington Harbor after Tropical Storm Hilary sent several inches of rain through the drainage system.
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"It washed streets and it washed the gutters," Burford said, a boat owner. "We have storm drains all over and drainage channels, and I know that they do have filters on some of them, but basically it all washes right to the ocean."

After heavy rain storms like this winter and Hilary, the Anaheim drainage channel dumps into Huntington Harbor and brings all the trash from storm drains into the marina.

PHOTOS: Images from Hilary, a rare SoCal tropical storm
A person pushes a cart on a flooded street as Tropical Storm Hilary heads north near Palm Springs, California, on Aug. 20, 2023.none
A person in rain gear looks through the sand at the beach in Carlsbad, Calif., Sunday, Aug. 20, 2023.none
Surfer Adrian Zimmerman is pulled with rope attached to a bike as he skims with a board on a fully soaked lawn under heavy rain at Cannon Park in Carlsbad, Calif., Aug. 20, 2023.none
Cars sit submerged in floodwaters on the Golden State Freeway as tropical storm Hilary moves through the area on Aug. 20, 2023, in Sun Valley, California.none
An aerial image shows mud along roadways following heavy rains from Tropical Storm Hilary, in Rancho Mirage, California, on August 21, 2023.none
Workers set up a sign near a flooded intersection as tropical storm Hilary moves through the area on Aug. 20, 2023, in San Bernardino, California.none
The Garbage Boom on the Los Angeles River in Long Beach did its job overnight, collecting debris flowing down the river from tropical storm Hilary in Long Beach on Aug. 21, 2023.none
A mailbox stands on a flooded residential street in Palmdale, Calif., as a tropical storm moves into the area, Aug. 20, 2023.none
Joseph Wolensky stands in the street with a sign that says "You call this a storm?" on Aug. 20, 2023, in Palm Desert, Calif.none
A person sits with umbrellas while watching surfers at Venice Beach on Aug. 20, 2023, in Los Angeles.none
The Los Angeles River swells with rushing water near Griffith Park in Los Angeles, California on Aug. 20, 2023.none
Maura Taura talks on a cell phone outside her home next to a downed tree after Tropical Storm Hilary went through, on Aug. 21, 2023, in Sun Valley, Calif.none
A broken umbrella protrudes from a trash barrel as pedestrians walk down Hollywood Boulevard during Tropical Storm Hilary, Aug. 20, 2023, in Los Angeles.none
A child plays in the rain, Sunday, Aug. 20, 2023, in Los Angeles.none
Vehicles cross over a flood control basin that has almost reached the street, Sunday, Aug. 20, 2023, in Palm Desert, Calif.none
Members of Cal Fire Pilot Rock 6 crew clear mud off the side of the road in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Hilary on Aug. 21, 2023, in Yucaipa, Calif.none
Dorian Padilla stands near his car as he waits for a tow after it got stuck in the mud on a street as another vehicle goes by on Aug. 21, 2023, in Cathedral City, Calif.none
A vehicle makes its way through a flooded street in a suburban area of the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles as a tropical storm moves into the area on Aug. 20, 2023.none
A plow clears debris along a flooded Sierra Highway in Palmdale, Calif., as Tropical Storm Hilary moves through the area on Aug. 20, 2023.none
A woman walks her dog past a eucalyptus tree that fell on a house Monday, Aug. 21, 2023, in Palm Desert, Calif.none
A toppled tree from the tropical storm covers a car in Los Angeles on Aug. 21, 2023.none
Mud and water flow through a crack off the side of the road in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Hilary on Aug. 21, 2023, in Yucaipa, Calif.none
A eucalyptus tree that fell on a house is seen on Aug. 21, 2023, in Palm Desert, Calif.none

"I searched online and I tried to contact the Orange County department of beaches and the city of Huntington Beach, and I could not find any site where I could let them know about this debris and see what we can do to clean it up," said Burford.

The trash in the marina affects boaters, businesses like ferries and fisherman and creates an unsafe habitat for the natural wildlife. It might be weeks before boaters can safely leave the marina again.
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"It does affect us being able to use our boats," said Steve Rigdon, a boat owner in the Huntington Harbor. "We also get damage from the boats sometimes, because as she said, large items like logs, they'll bang up against our boats."

Burford and other boaters are contacting the city for help in cleaning up the marina.



"Of course the marina, they're very proactive, but they have to request it through the county. That's where the delay is," said Rigdon. "I can tell you, I'm hoping this gets cleaned up soon. In the storms in February, it took months before we got it."

Boaters say the best way to keep the marina clean is to not let trash go into the storm drain in the first place.
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